Tuesday Tunes – “Left Handed Kisses” by Andrew Bird & Fiona Apple

“I can’t write simple love songs. People are complex,” Andrew Bird said in a press release accompanying this single from his forthcoming album, Are You Serious. “Left Handed Kisses” isn’t a love song. It’s a song about trying to write a love song. Bird collaborated with Fiona Apple for this duet. Her vocals carry the song into “call and response” territory, adding a sharp edge to Bird’s softer tone. “Left Handed Kisses” never allows the listener to get too comfortable, as both singers’ voices exhibit varying degrees of sweetness and bitterness throughout the song. It’s a perfect mirror of the human complexities that prevent Bird from writing simple love songs to begin with.